Norris saves day, Fremd out-PKs BG
Vikings advance after 3 shootout stops from soph keeper
By Mike Garofola
LINCOLNSHIRE -- Once again, soccer fans were reminded why anyone involved in a shootout should be petrified.
Fremd and Buffalo Grove played to a 1-1 draw after 100 minutes of edgy, hard-fought soccer at the Stevenson Regional.
With each side showing what it could do during stretches of quality soccer throughout the match, it came down to Jennifer Norris, the Vikings terrific sophomore keeper, who decided the proceedings with superb play in the shootout.
Norris saved three spot-kicks, the last a brilliant leap of faith to stop Buffalo Grove's Pam Bolis and give Vikings teammate Kayla Tanner the chance to strike the game-winner for a 3-2 shootout win.
The heart-stopping victory advanced seventh-seeded Fremd (7-9-4) into the 10 a.m. Saturday final against host and second-seed Stevenson (10-6-2), which earlier in the day overwhelmed Zion-Benton 9-0.
"When you have a keeper like Jennifer, and you're in a situation like we were tonight, you know your chances to win are much better because of her," said Vikings manager Steve Keller after his club mobbed the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match following her marvelous effort to help keep the Vikings season alive.
It was a wretched first half hour of play by the Vikings according to Keller, Norris and Tanner, who agreed there was little to boast about after the ninth-seeded Bison (7-7-4) came out on their front foot and rarely let up.
"We just were not very good," began Keller.
"There wasn't much energy or fight in (us) which is something we've been lacking for most of our games, especially when we concede the first goal or two.
"In fact, some of our best work of late came after New Trier put four into our net in our season finale. Then we came alive and played some of our best soccer of the year.
Added Tanner: "Yea, that's what happened to us tonight; like we had to go a goal down before we realized we had to respond or the season was over."
The Vikings inability to connect and get something going through the run of play allowed Buffalo Grove to produce some strong work in front of its backline, which for the better part of the first period had little to do in order to keep anything serious sent on frame or near its keeper Jackie Molloy.
"I thought we had control of that first half and leading up to us getting the first goal of the game," offered Bison manager Pat Dudle. "But the thing you always have to remember when playing Fremd is Steve will always have a team that is in it right until the end."
In the first half, Fremd had a solid opportunity when Ashley Scesniak scurried free to get to the endline. The freshman whipped a wonderful ball to the back post but not one of her mates was there. That made it easy for Buffalo Grove defender Kendra Lee to send the ball out of the area.
The Bison followed with some of their best stuff of the first half: Savannah Larsen headed wide a corner from freshman Quinlan Libit; and a nice early ball by Kayla Weede filled with promise saw Norris came off her line to collect it before Macy Floro was able to run onto the chance.
Just before the Bison picked up a head of steam in the final quarter hour of the half, Fremd sophomore Lauren Burk was forced off when she suffered a bloody nose that took the talented center back out of action until after break. That forced the Vikings to move star Marta Cholewa back to her familiar spot.
Keller stationed Cholewa just in front of his backline in more of a defensive midfield role, but she moved forward when the Vikings needed numbers.
Alyssa Floro was booked harshly when she ran into Norris who challenged a dangerous ball over the top by Libit on a 38th-minute play. Keller held his breath as he waited to see how his keeper dealt with the blow. Like a heavyweight boxer, she continued to fight.
"Jennifer has dealt with a few injuries here in the final couple of weeks of the season, but she's found a way to get herself ready on game day, which tonight, proved so important for us," said Keller.
After a scoreless first half, confusion reigned during the sequence that led to the game's first goal. Norris and her backline had a communication breakdown that contributed to a Buffalo Grove lead. A ball was left sitting inside the six-yard that Libit steered in from close range.
The 42nd-minute goal was made possible thanks to terrific individual work by Alyssa Floro and Bolis.
"I wasn't sure how we would respond to going down a goal in what could have been the last game of the season for this team," said Keller, who was pleasantly surprised by the fight-back in his club.
Elizabeth Prigge, who throughout the second half delivered one devilishly good dead ball after another, started her string of sensational serves from the byline. She drove her attempt off the gloves of Buffalo Grove keeper Molloy and onto the roof for a corner.
Next Prigge initiated play with an inward swinger that Burk redirected towards the back post and Madeline McCarthy.
An alert Molloy, following the redirected flight of the ball, was in perfect position to pull down McCarthy's shot at the back post.
Keller switched up and pushed Burk up-top to join Tanner to energize the Vikings attack. Three minutes later, a McCarthy conversion brought the game back level.
"It took us awhile to get things going, but that goal from BG seemed to do it for us," said the junior Tanner, who along with Cholewa were the oldest players in Keller's first eleven.
The Prigge-McCarthy alliance came through at the back post when McCarthy's header thumped into the net in the 51st minute.
"It was a new game for us after Madeline's goal. We finally started to play with more energy in our attack," Norris said.
Burk, who like has been running at less than 100% of late, was in top form for a stretch when she created three-straight corners with pace and power. All were either hauled in by Molloy or parried out of the area by Bison defenders.
Allie Prigge got to the endline as the Vikings continued to pour forward but her cross to the spot was grabbed with confidence by Molloy, who enjoyed a solid evening of work.
Fremd defender Morgan Perkins persuaded Alyssa Floro to shoot sooner than later after a Fremd player was dispossessed inside the box. Then Buffalo Grove's Weede played to Libit to force Norris into action in the 74th minute.
The Bison continued their push with a looping ball into the box from Christina Ruterschmidt that was pulled down flawlessly by Norris, who elevated high above a group of players.
Chippy play took the contest into the first of the two required 10-minute extra sessions. Each side tackled with more zest and zeal with the hope a first- or second-ball win might lead to a scoring opportunity.
Then it was on to the shootout.
"We had some chances, and created some others that might have led to something, but our story this year has been our inability to finish," said Dudle. "And combined with us going against a keeper like (Norris) we found ourselves in a situation you never want to get to in order to decide who goes on."
Norris opened and turned away Lee with ease, then stepped up her effort with a sensational left glove save on Libit, after Cholewa opened the shootout by going in from the spot.
Norris nearly stopped her third-consecutive spot-kick when she guessed correctly - only to get the tip of her glove on Alyssa Floro's attempt before it found the back of the net.
Even at 1-1, Savannah Larsen made it 2-1 with a blistering strike, but Fremd's Kennedy Gosell cancelled it out with her own spot-kick blast.
Norris managed to get enough lift to go horizontal and pull Bolis' sure goal out of the back of the net before watching her teammate Tanner go high, but under the bar to give the Vikings the victory.
"That effort by Norris was amazing. She literally caught the ball and brought it down, just an amazing effort from her," said a delighted Keller.
"When your in games like this at this time of the season, you have to expect them to come down to PKs," began Norris. "After we got back even, I began to think it might happen tonight, and that I would have to save one or two for us to win.
"I'm just glad that I was able to do that for us."
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove (4-4-3)
GK- Jackie Molloy
D- Zoe Robertson
D- Kendra Lee
D- Bridget Reynolds
D- Christina Ruterschmidt
M- Kayla Weede
M- Kara Tyner
M- Savannah Larsen
F- Alyssa Floro
F- Pam Bolis
F- Macy Floro
Fremd (3-1-4-2)
GK: Jennifer Norris
D- Elizabeth Prigge
D- Lauren Burk
D- Allie Prigge
M- Marta Cholewa
M- Kayla Tanner
M- Emma Katovich
M- Maya Poyraz
M- Madeline McCarthy
F- Claire Stewart
F- Ashley Scesniak
Chicagolad Soccer MVP of the Match: Jennifer Norris, so., GK, Fremd
Referee: Paul McMahon
Scoring summary
Second half
Buffalo Grove: Libit (U/A) 42'
Fremd: McCarthy (E. Prigge) 51'
Vikings advance after 3 shootout stops from soph keeper
By Mike Garofola
LINCOLNSHIRE -- Once again, soccer fans were reminded why anyone involved in a shootout should be petrified.
Fremd and Buffalo Grove played to a 1-1 draw after 100 minutes of edgy, hard-fought soccer at the Stevenson Regional.
With each side showing what it could do during stretches of quality soccer throughout the match, it came down to Jennifer Norris, the Vikings terrific sophomore keeper, who decided the proceedings with superb play in the shootout.
Norris saved three spot-kicks, the last a brilliant leap of faith to stop Buffalo Grove's Pam Bolis and give Vikings teammate Kayla Tanner the chance to strike the game-winner for a 3-2 shootout win.
The heart-stopping victory advanced seventh-seeded Fremd (7-9-4) into the 10 a.m. Saturday final against host and second-seed Stevenson (10-6-2), which earlier in the day overwhelmed Zion-Benton 9-0.
"When you have a keeper like Jennifer, and you're in a situation like we were tonight, you know your chances to win are much better because of her," said Vikings manager Steve Keller after his club mobbed the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match following her marvelous effort to help keep the Vikings season alive.
It was a wretched first half hour of play by the Vikings according to Keller, Norris and Tanner, who agreed there was little to boast about after the ninth-seeded Bison (7-7-4) came out on their front foot and rarely let up.
"We just were not very good," began Keller.
"There wasn't much energy or fight in (us) which is something we've been lacking for most of our games, especially when we concede the first goal or two.
"In fact, some of our best work of late came after New Trier put four into our net in our season finale. Then we came alive and played some of our best soccer of the year.
Added Tanner: "Yea, that's what happened to us tonight; like we had to go a goal down before we realized we had to respond or the season was over."
The Vikings inability to connect and get something going through the run of play allowed Buffalo Grove to produce some strong work in front of its backline, which for the better part of the first period had little to do in order to keep anything serious sent on frame or near its keeper Jackie Molloy.
"I thought we had control of that first half and leading up to us getting the first goal of the game," offered Bison manager Pat Dudle. "But the thing you always have to remember when playing Fremd is Steve will always have a team that is in it right until the end."
In the first half, Fremd had a solid opportunity when Ashley Scesniak scurried free to get to the endline. The freshman whipped a wonderful ball to the back post but not one of her mates was there. That made it easy for Buffalo Grove defender Kendra Lee to send the ball out of the area.
The Bison followed with some of their best stuff of the first half: Savannah Larsen headed wide a corner from freshman Quinlan Libit; and a nice early ball by Kayla Weede filled with promise saw Norris came off her line to collect it before Macy Floro was able to run onto the chance.
Just before the Bison picked up a head of steam in the final quarter hour of the half, Fremd sophomore Lauren Burk was forced off when she suffered a bloody nose that took the talented center back out of action until after break. That forced the Vikings to move star Marta Cholewa back to her familiar spot.
Keller stationed Cholewa just in front of his backline in more of a defensive midfield role, but she moved forward when the Vikings needed numbers.
Alyssa Floro was booked harshly when she ran into Norris who challenged a dangerous ball over the top by Libit on a 38th-minute play. Keller held his breath as he waited to see how his keeper dealt with the blow. Like a heavyweight boxer, she continued to fight.
"Jennifer has dealt with a few injuries here in the final couple of weeks of the season, but she's found a way to get herself ready on game day, which tonight, proved so important for us," said Keller.
After a scoreless first half, confusion reigned during the sequence that led to the game's first goal. Norris and her backline had a communication breakdown that contributed to a Buffalo Grove lead. A ball was left sitting inside the six-yard that Libit steered in from close range.
The 42nd-minute goal was made possible thanks to terrific individual work by Alyssa Floro and Bolis.
"I wasn't sure how we would respond to going down a goal in what could have been the last game of the season for this team," said Keller, who was pleasantly surprised by the fight-back in his club.
Elizabeth Prigge, who throughout the second half delivered one devilishly good dead ball after another, started her string of sensational serves from the byline. She drove her attempt off the gloves of Buffalo Grove keeper Molloy and onto the roof for a corner.
Next Prigge initiated play with an inward swinger that Burk redirected towards the back post and Madeline McCarthy.
An alert Molloy, following the redirected flight of the ball, was in perfect position to pull down McCarthy's shot at the back post.
Keller switched up and pushed Burk up-top to join Tanner to energize the Vikings attack. Three minutes later, a McCarthy conversion brought the game back level.
"It took us awhile to get things going, but that goal from BG seemed to do it for us," said the junior Tanner, who along with Cholewa were the oldest players in Keller's first eleven.
The Prigge-McCarthy alliance came through at the back post when McCarthy's header thumped into the net in the 51st minute.
"It was a new game for us after Madeline's goal. We finally started to play with more energy in our attack," Norris said.
Burk, who like has been running at less than 100% of late, was in top form for a stretch when she created three-straight corners with pace and power. All were either hauled in by Molloy or parried out of the area by Bison defenders.
Allie Prigge got to the endline as the Vikings continued to pour forward but her cross to the spot was grabbed with confidence by Molloy, who enjoyed a solid evening of work.
Fremd defender Morgan Perkins persuaded Alyssa Floro to shoot sooner than later after a Fremd player was dispossessed inside the box. Then Buffalo Grove's Weede played to Libit to force Norris into action in the 74th minute.
The Bison continued their push with a looping ball into the box from Christina Ruterschmidt that was pulled down flawlessly by Norris, who elevated high above a group of players.
Chippy play took the contest into the first of the two required 10-minute extra sessions. Each side tackled with more zest and zeal with the hope a first- or second-ball win might lead to a scoring opportunity.
Then it was on to the shootout.
"We had some chances, and created some others that might have led to something, but our story this year has been our inability to finish," said Dudle. "And combined with us going against a keeper like (Norris) we found ourselves in a situation you never want to get to in order to decide who goes on."
Norris opened and turned away Lee with ease, then stepped up her effort with a sensational left glove save on Libit, after Cholewa opened the shootout by going in from the spot.
Norris nearly stopped her third-consecutive spot-kick when she guessed correctly - only to get the tip of her glove on Alyssa Floro's attempt before it found the back of the net.
Even at 1-1, Savannah Larsen made it 2-1 with a blistering strike, but Fremd's Kennedy Gosell cancelled it out with her own spot-kick blast.
Norris managed to get enough lift to go horizontal and pull Bolis' sure goal out of the back of the net before watching her teammate Tanner go high, but under the bar to give the Vikings the victory.
"That effort by Norris was amazing. She literally caught the ball and brought it down, just an amazing effort from her," said a delighted Keller.
"When your in games like this at this time of the season, you have to expect them to come down to PKs," began Norris. "After we got back even, I began to think it might happen tonight, and that I would have to save one or two for us to win.
"I'm just glad that I was able to do that for us."
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove (4-4-3)
GK- Jackie Molloy
D- Zoe Robertson
D- Kendra Lee
D- Bridget Reynolds
D- Christina Ruterschmidt
M- Kayla Weede
M- Kara Tyner
M- Savannah Larsen
F- Alyssa Floro
F- Pam Bolis
F- Macy Floro
Fremd (3-1-4-2)
GK: Jennifer Norris
D- Elizabeth Prigge
D- Lauren Burk
D- Allie Prigge
M- Marta Cholewa
M- Kayla Tanner
M- Emma Katovich
M- Maya Poyraz
M- Madeline McCarthy
F- Claire Stewart
F- Ashley Scesniak
Chicagolad Soccer MVP of the Match: Jennifer Norris, so., GK, Fremd
Referee: Paul McMahon
Scoring summary
Second half
Buffalo Grove: Libit (U/A) 42'
Fremd: McCarthy (E. Prigge) 51'